Oranges From A to Z: 26 Things to Know

Anti-inflammatory
Oranges, with their anti-inflammatory properties, stimulate the detoxification process through the liver.

Bittersweet
Oranges are ideal for recipes calling for a sweet and sour flavor. Duck all’orange, much loved in both France and Italy, is a perfect example.

China
The orange originated as a hybrid plant in China and Southeast Asia. Merchants from Portugal were the first to begin trading them in the 14th Century.

Diet
A diet rich in oranges is ideal for the cold winter months, as it maintains the body’s natural pH balance. The “orange diet” calls for the two main meals a day to include carbohydrates and vegetables and protein and vegetables, with oranges eaten as snacks.

Essential oil
Orange oil has many benefits for the body: it eases digestion, helps insomnia, and is also a muscle relaxer. Adding a couple of drops to a warm bath will give you a sure sense of wellbeing.

French National Institute for Agricultural Research
A French study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition states that oranges are helpful in combatting high blood pressure.

Good luck
Dating from ancient times, oranges have been a symbol of good luck, abundance, purity, virginity and fertility.

Hybrid
Oranges most likely originated centuries ago as a hybrid coming from the mandarin and the grapefuit – a large citrus fruit. They are now an autonomous plant.

Ivrea
The Northern Italian city of Ivrea has been holding a Carnival festival every year since 1808, which includes a “Battle of Oranges”. From carriages or on foot, troops of “orange soldiers” make their way around the city.

Juice
Some of its more precious contents are Vitamin C and mineral salts. To best benefit from orange juice, it’s best to squeeze it yourself, and drink it unstrained.

King orange
Is the name of the world’s largest orange. After 15 years of research, the Agricultural Research Institute of Taiwan managed to create an orange weighing in at 600 grams, with a diameter of 10.5 centimeters. A cross between an American and Japanese variety, it was the researcher Huang Ah-hsien to introduce it to the world.

Liqueur
Oranges are commonly used to make liqueurs and bitters. The best-known is Curaçao, which is made from bitter orange rinds coming from the island of Curaçao.

Marmelade
Is the popular jam made from orange pulp and rind. It’s very popular at British breakfast tables.

Navel
Navel oranges are a special variety of oranges, where a tiny twin fruit is contained at the opposite end of the stem.

Orange tree
Reaching a maximum of 12 meters in height, with white fragrant blossoms, orange trees are the most cultivated fruit trees in the world. Oranges make up 70 percent of the world’s citrus production. Peel – Even the orange peel is delicious with caramelized and dipped in dark chocolate.

Quality
Sweet or sour? These are the two macro-categories of oranges. The sweet variety is more common, and comes originally from Southeast Asia and India. The sour version comes from China and was brought to Europe by the Arabs in the 10th Century.

Rice
The peel and juice of oranges can be used to make a savory risotto. For this dish, it’s important to use pesticide-free fruit.

Sicily and Spain
Over 80% of all European oranges come from Sicily and Spain, and the EU produces around 6 million tons per year.

Tons
In the 2012-2013 season, 49.6 millions tons of oranges were produced worldwide – 4.3 million less than the previous year. The largest decline came from Brazil, whose production fell 20%.

University of New York
According to research here, oranges could produce energy for domestic use, and could also be used as bio-fuel for cars, thanks to the fruit’s pigment.

Vitamine C
Oranges are a supreme source of vitamin C, helpful in combatting free radicals, ageing and illness. To best benefit from the vitamin, it’s advised to take about 60 grams a day – the amount contained in an orange weighing about 120 grams. The Tarocco orange is the variety that contains the most vitamin C.

Wedding
According to an ancient tradition, a bride should wear a crown of orange blossoms on her wedding day, as a symbol of her purity.

Xmas tree
In the past, families of modest means used oranges to decorate their Christmas trees. The fruit was sliced and baked in the oven, left to dry and then hung on branches with colorful ribbon.

Youth
Orange pulp is not only healthy to eat, but is great for the skin. It combats aging and adds vitality and luminosity.

Zeus
According to the Greek myth, for Zeus’s wedding, Juno had orange trees in her dowry. Zeus kept them in a secret garden, that only Hercules was able to reach – and it was Hercules who brought this unknown fruit to humans.